Shoe cleaning and polishing machine



Sept. 8, 1931.

v. RAscHELLA 1,822,419

SHOE CLEANING AND POLISHING MACHINE Filed Oct. 5, 1928 3 Sheets-Sheet l SePt- 8, 1931- v. RAscHl-:LLA 1,822,419

SHOE CLEANING AND POLISHING MACHINE h3 A TToRNEY Seplf. s, 1931."

V. RASCH ELLA SHOE CLEANING AND POLISHING MACHINE Filed Oct. 5. 1928 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 IN V EN TOR. VINCNI HSCHELLH.

' la', ATTORNEY llatentecl Sept. 8, 1931 narran stares PATENT ori-icc VINCENT RASCHELLA, OF WEEIIAWKEN, NEW' JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO .AMERICAN SHOE POLISHING- IVIACHINE` CORP., Al CCRPORATION OF NEW JERSEY SHOE CLEANING AND POLISI-IING MACHINE Application led October 5,

My invention relates to the art of automatically or semi-automatically polishing shoes. Many efforts have been made in these last years to perfect apparatus of this kind. By my Patent No. 1,329,677 of Feb. 3, 1920 on a shoe polishing machine I introduced a novel type of device in which the user of the machine, standing on a traveling conveyor, has his shoes polished by a series of rotary brushes arranged on two shafts extending in the Vdirection in which the conveyor carries the user. Other devices, developed since that time, make also use of the conveyor system, proving the fundamental advantage of that method; but that machine as well as others developed to date, while in part effecting a good polish, do not produce a job equivalent to the results obtained by cleaning and polishing shoes by hand. Other machines, which theoretically might promise satisfactory results, entail mechanical and economical difficulties which have prevented their commercial adaptation.

Vforking on the principles laid down in my Patent No. 1,329,677 I have successfully developed practical and efficient means to quickly and thoroughly cleanse and polish shoes and the objects of my invention are:

First, to simulate by corresponding mechanical movements the procedure used in cleaning and polishing by hand;

Second, to connect the operative parts by a simple, fool-proof drive;

Third, to effectively protect the leg of the user against the gearing of the machine' and against the coloring liquids on the brushes;

Fourth, to carry through the simulation of the hand process by brushes of novel shapes;

Fifth, to spread the cleaning and polishing fluid over the entire shoe;

Sixth, to polish the sides of the sole, of the heel and the lower parts of the top leather in the same thorough manner in which heretofore the upper parts of the leather were treated.

I attain these objects by the means illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which,

Figure 1 is a plan view of my machine from which the cover is almost completely re- 1928. Serial No. 310,476.

moved withexception of the corners in the front and back on the right side of the machine. The left and right sides of this drawing, I call the back and front of the machine, respectively; the upper half of this drawing is correspondingly the right side of the machine. On the left side of the machine the brushes operating above the conveyor are not fully shown but just indicated by dotted Youtlines. The oil system is omitted.

Figure 2 is a side elevation of my machine seen from the left side. The covering and rail on the left side of the machine are removed. Some parts in the background, on the right side of the machine, are omitted for clearness sake.

Figure 3 is a sectioned backview of the machine.

Figures 1, 2 and 3 are corresponding projections.

Figure 4 is a developed, sectioned side view of the tank containing the shoe polish and its operating mechanism.

Figure 5 shows a bottom view of the cap on the outlet of the tank containing the shoe polish.

Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout the various views.

The `machine is built up on a floor 8. The motor 9 is the driving means. All longitudinal shafts and stub shafts are journaled or mounted, respectively, in the bracket 10. By

pinion 11 and gear 12 the speed of the motor is reduced and its power is transmitted to shaft 13, which is journaled in brackets '10 and 14. VAt its front end shaft 13 carries the bevel pinion 15 which meshes into the bevel gear 16 on shaft 17. On the left end of that shaft the crank lever 18 connects by a lever 19 to a double lever 20,'which is mounted on the left end of a shaft 21 running across the machine. The rotation of shaft 17 is therefore changed bythe crank transmission into -a rocking motion at shaft 21, which is transmitted to the various reciprocating parts of the machine.

The principal reciprocating parts of my device are the two sets of brushes 22, 23 and 24, 25, which are mounted on both sides of the machine in the front and serve for clean-1 ing the rough dirt off the shoes. The backs 26 of these brushes are mounted on slides 27 which ride on the horizontal rods 28 eXtending between the bracket 29 and the stands 30. The slide y27 on brush 25 is connected by a lever 31 to the free end of double lever 20 on shaft 21. The slide 27 on the brush 24 `is connected by a similar lever 32 to the free end of a lever 33 which, like the lower end of double lever 20, extends downward from shaft 21. symmetrical connecting means transmit the rocking motion of shaft 21 to the set of brushes 22, 23 on the right side of the machine. The distance between the two sets of brushes is conveniently arranged to allow the user to stand with one foot on each side, on `grates on the floor below these brushes.

The left end of shaft 13 carries behind bracket l0, the smaller gear 34. That` gear meshes into gear 35 on shaft 36 which is journaled near its front end in bracket 10, its other end being supported by worm bracket 37. lVorm 3S on that shaft meshes into worm wheel 39 which, by shaft 40, drives the sprocket-wheel 411 at the back end of the conveyor. Looking at the machine from the left side, this sprocket-wheel 41 rotates in counter-clockwise direction, pulling conveyor band 42 and sliding it through the channel- `iron trough 43 from the front to the back of the machine. That trough is mounted in the back on bracket 10, in the front on bracket 29 and has a number of rollers 44 rotatably `mounted on the shafts 44Et journaled-in the opposite sides of the channel iron trough 43 which facilitate free movement of the conveyor band 42 through the trough. An idler sprocket 45 corresponding in size to wheel 41 is mounted at the front of the machine; the lower part of the conveyor band, in completion of its endless run, extends between these two sprocket wheels, sliding along the floor 8. By a chain of idler gears 46 and 47,

ear 35 connects to a similar gear 48 which 'idles on a stud 49 on bracket l0. These two gears, by means of gears 50 and 51, impart counter-clockwise and clockwise rotation (Figure 3) to shafts 52 and 53, respectively. These longitudinal shafts extend through almost the full length of the machine and are supported Vnear their ends bybrackets 10 and 29. Since they revolve at a high speed and carry considerable loads, they require additional supports, two of which are indicated by brackets 54 and 55. These two shafts correspond to the horizontal shafts D and C of my Patent No. 1,329,677 andcorrespondingly carry, in rotation, the cleaning brushes 56,

applicator brushes 57, shining brushes 58 and final brushes 59. In addition to these brushes, miter gears 60, meshing into the miterjgears 61 on vertical shafts 62, are

mounted on these shafts. The vertical shafts 62 are mounted in brackets 14 and 63 and the front set carries the heel brushes 64, 65, which 75 on the outside of the tank.

rotate in counter-clockwise and clockwise direction, respectively, sweeping above the conveyor band in the direction in which it travels. The set of brushes in the back, 66 and 67 rotate in clockwise and counter-clockwise direction, respectively, so that they strike the toe end of the shoe of the user standing on the conveyor, shining the front of the shoe.

The brushes 57 are surrounded by a closelitting casing 68, a section of which, above the conveyor, is cut away. rlhere is a hole in said casing, on the top, which registers with a hole in the cover 69, when said cover is on the machine in its place. AUpon said cover is mounted, above said hole, the tank 70 which contains the polishing liquid.

'lhat tank is detailed in Figure 4. ln the center of the tank is mounted a vertical tubing 71 in which is slidable the piston 72. rlhis piston, by piston rod 73, is hinged upon doublc lever 74 which is fulcrumed to a bracket The spring 76 tensions the double lever 74 in such a manner that the piston 72 normally is at its lowest position in the tubing. The double lever is connected by a vertical connecting rod 77 to an angle lever 7S which is mounted on a bracket 79 on top of the cover 69. A horizontal connecting rod 80 connects the vertical arni of the angle lever to one arm of the double lever Sl which is fulcrumed on the cover, its free arm 82 extending over the cover into the space above the conveyor band. Then the legl of the user, who stands on the conveyor band, strikes the arms 32, those arms are swung back `and the above described connecting means transmit this motion to the pistons 72, which are thereby raised; they return to their low position, owing to the tension of springs 86, when arms 82 are allowed to swing to the front after the users leg has passed.

`Vhen the piston is raised, it sucks into the tube through holes 83 some of the shoe polishing liquid or paste S4 surrounding the tubing in tank 70. When, later on, the piston is released, it pushes the liquid which before was sucked into the tube, down thru the holes in ap 35 onto the brush 57 below. (In its normal. low position piston 72 closes holes 83, preventing undue flow of the liquid.) The brush applies that polishingI liquid to the shoe of the user, as he passes by. The casing 68 prevents splashing and evaporation of the polishing liquid from the applicator brushes.

The polish thus thrown onto the top of the shoe is distributed and rubbed onto the sides of the shoe by the sectional brushes 86 which are mounted on vertical shafts 87. The reciprocating motion is imparted to these sectional brushes 86 from the rocking shaft 21 by'a universally jointed lever connection S8.

The users shoe after having passed the sectional brushes, passes the collars 89 mounted on the shafts 52 and 53; these collars carry one or more blades 90 which cause a iiow of air which serves to dry the polishing liquid applied to and distributed on the shoes by brushes 57 and 86.

Tubes 91 run through the length of the machine along the upper corners of the covers and are connected by suitable tubing to the various bearings and gears requiring lubrication. One of these tubings 92J is shown carrying the oil to the bearings on brackets l0. This oil system is connected to a pipe loop 93, which is slung below the point where the cover rests on the machine and up again on the outside, the necessary oil being filled into the lubricating system from the Opening at 94. By the U-shaped loop in the pipe, openings in the covers for the oil system are avoided so that it is not disturbed when the covers are taken olf the machine.

My novel arrangement of a dispenser for the polishing liquid has the advantage of 'furnishing a measured quantity of polish at the correct time, the device being positive and waste of liquid being impossible at times between applications. The polish-dispensing tanks are mounted on the top of the machine; their removal for cleaning purposes is thus facilitated.

There is a gap between the two covers right above the conveyor band; from the upper edges of these covers extend, at an angle, downward, the curtains 95, the free ends of which normally touch each other at the center of the machine. This normal position is given to these curtains by a series of coiled springs 96,. extending along the upper edges of the covers on the inside of the curtains, which are doubled up over these. As the user ef the machine is carried through it on the conveyor band, his legs part and push down the spring' curtains to alevel so low that the various brushes cannot strike anything but his shoes. shape, a gaiter or spat as illustrated in my previous patent, may be used.

At the back end of the conveyor, I arrange small rollers 97 as a continuation of the horizontal top level of the conveyor band so that the shoes of the user are guided from the conveyor band, by way of these rollers, onto the solid cover of the machine. The space of the cover in back of these rollers will,-in the case of a practical application of my device,-be longer than shown in the drawings, to offer a solid rest for the user, as he steps oii the machine.

On both sides, along the full length of the machine, I provide hand rails 98, the supporting risers coming up from the floor 8 of the machine.

Round brushes give excellent results in connection with my machine; but I have discovered that the novel shape which I have given to the various rotary brushes in my machine is very much .more effective to pro- If the shoes should be of fancy duce the desired results. By providing a high point or section 99 along the periphery of the brush and by spirally receding the outline of the brush from that point or section towards the center of the brush, the action of my brush is increased and a multiplicity of such high points or sections will accentuate the effectiveness of my invention. Rotating these brushes so that their high points 99 strike the shoes, a certain whipping effect is attained, the force of the impact of the brush at that point being backed up by the spirally receding continuation of the outer face of the brush. It is clear that a number of blows,

carried through by strokes, during which the pressure of the brush decreases, makes this kind of brush many times more effective than a brush which is just round.

I may use various kinds of material for y my brushes. I-Iere I confine myself to two types of brushes, bristle or horse-hair, and cotton or wool-brushes, the latter ones being built up in the manner of buffmg wheels. Thus. for instance, the arrangement may be y as follows: the preliminary rough cleaning brushes, which are arranged outside of the machine proper to prevent heavy dirt from getting into it, will be made up from coarse, i hair. The cleaning brushes 56, which machine, are made of bristle. For the applicater brushes 57, I preferably use cotton brushes because they will retain and partly the operator meets first in traveling thru the '39:5

absorb the polishing liquid applied to them The sectional brushes 86 by which the polish placed onto the shoes by the applicator brushes is spread over their sides and worked into the part between the top leather and the soles, are made of bristle. After having passed these sectional brushes the foot of the user meets the horizontal heel brushes 64, 65, the rotation of which above the conveyor, is in the same direction as-but of course at a very much higher speed than-the move!` ment of the conveyor band. They are made of cotton. The vertical shining brushes 58, and the horizontal shining brushes 66, 67, which follow next, are made of bristle and the final vertical brushes 59 are made ofr'" cotton or wool.

The device shown in the drawings is intended to be merely illustrative. A great number of variations are possible which will` all fall within the scope of my inventionf'lZO whereby the application is made more even. t'

ies

Allhesameeflcct I attain in nthe'polishing operation by operating the brushes (ill and 66, and `65 and 67, in opposite directions. The novel effect thus attained, which is to approach by various means the shoe from all angles in a horizontal plane, is an important feature of my invention, and it is of course understood that I may apply in `the distributing or shiningoperations, respectively, -the principles ofthe other one of these operations.

l. In a shoe cleaning and polishing 1na chine, in which the shoes of the user are carried on a travelling' conveyor, the combinationof a cover for the sides and ends of said machine, having displaceable sections form- `ing apart of sa-id cover normally closed and disposed over said conveyor substantially enclosing the shoe cleaning and polishing elements of said machine, and adapted to be fopened as the user travels with the conveyor, said displaceable sections being flexible and reinforced by spring members forming a part thereof, and adapted to shield the garments of the user against soiling during the shoe cleaning operation.

.2. In a shoe cleaning and polishing machine, in which the shoes ofthe user are carried 011 a travelling conveyor, the combination of a` cover enclosing the sides andends of said machine, and normally closed displaceable shields, forming a substantially integral part of said cover, disposed `oppositely to ieach other and over the conveyor, characterized by a. double layer of material, encasing a flexible, reinforcing spring member, said 4shields being arranged to enclose the cleaning and polishing eiements of said machine and Vto be opened by the travel of the user y with the conveyor, and to shield the users garments from soiling'during the shoe cleaning operation.

3. In `a `shoe cleaning `and polishing 1nachine, the combination of a traveling conveyor on which the shoes ofthe user are carried, a series of applicator and shining 'brushesoperatively arranged alonglthe sides of said conveyor, the applicatorbrushes and some of the shining brushes being n'iounted on horizontal axes, Which are disposed substantially parallel to said travelling conveyor andthe other shiningbrushes being mounted Ion vertical axes, andmeans to effect the simul taneous, operative, Vtravelling movement of said conveyor and the operative movement of said brushes to perform the shoe polishing operation.

4. In a shoe cleaning and polishing machine,vthe combination of a travelling conveyor `on which the shoes of the user are carried, a series `of applicator, distributor and shining brushes operatively arranged along and over the side edges of said conveyor, means to effect `the simultaneous operative travelling movementv of said conveyor andthe chine, in which the sho-es ofthe wearer are carried on a travelling conveyor, a cover for the sides and ends of said machines, having Flexible, displaceable sections forming a part of said cover, which are disposed over and meet above the conveyor and adjacent thereto vand which are held together in normally closed relation resiliently, and Which are adapted to be opened by the footof the user as it travels with the conveyor, and which in operative positions of adjustment are adapted to shield the garn'ients of the user against soiling during the shoe cleaning and polish ing operation.

,C'gned at llleehaivken, in the county of Hudson and F-tate of New Jersey this first day of October, A. D. 1928.

VINCENT RASCI'IELLA. 

